The “Today” show’s Al Roker is speaking out concerning the serious health issue he endured last 12 months that landed him within the hospital.
On an episode of the podcast “Your Mama’s Kitchen,” Roker, 69, spoke concerning the ordeal — and the way it forced him to skip Thanksgiving.
“It’s no secret that I had a severe medical issue, and to be completely honest, I almost died. I didn’t realize it on the time,” the anchorman told host Michele Norris in a show clip obtained by People.
“But I missed Thanksgiving, and almost missed Christmas,” Roker added. “And I forgot how essential those touchstone moments are.”
He then noted how when he got here out from surgery, the very first thing he told his wife, Deborah Roberts, was a dish that he desired to whip up for Christmas.
That was an indication that he knew he was going be high quality.
He confessed that considered one of the principal things that kept his spirits up was knowing he’d spend the vacations together with his family.
“I felt, in a way, badly because I ruined Thanksgiving for the family and I used to be not going to let that occur for Christmas,” he sighed.
Norris tried to comfort Roker by reassuring him that he wasn’t giving himself enough credit for pulling through his health battles.
The broadcaster replied: “I do know … however it was essential to me and gave me something to push for. And I made Christmas dinner.”
Roker was hospitalized last November on account of blood clots in his leg and his lungs.
He needed to take a leave of absence from the “Today” show and didn’t return to the NBC stage until January.
In a virtual appearance last December on his morning talk show, Roker explained that his experience has been a “tough slog” and he was doing physical therapy amid his recovery.
“I feel good. I feel strong. Every single day I feel a bit bit higher,” he said on the time.
Earlier this 12 months, he told his “Today” co-hosts that his “life-threatening” medical procedures were “frightening.”
He noted that he had two bleeding ulcers, his colon needed to be restructured, his gallbladder was removed and he had surgery on his small intestine.